Kosher grocer nabbed for Swiss account

MONTREAL — The administrator of a kosher grocery store is being pursued by Revenu Québec for allegedly not declaring a Swiss bank account used to evade paying taxes.

In an Oct. 4 press release, the ministry said it has taken legal measures to recover the more than $1.1 million owed by Aaron Kadoch, who runs Cité Cachère Inc. on Van Horne Avenue in Côte des Neiges.

It claims Kadoch failed to report that he holds an HSBC account in Geneva, Switzerland with investments totalling over $1.6 million.

Revenu Québec obtained an authorization in Quebec Superior Court to put a lien on a downtown property owned by Kadoch, as well as to seize his moveable belongings, including two deluxe vehicles, diamonds and jewelry.

It also has permission to freeze deposits he has in a dozen branches of various financial institutions.

In January 2009, French authorities obtained computer files containing information on 120,000 HSBC accounts held by 80,000 people in 180 countries. The names of the Canadians were shared with the Canada Revenue Agency.

Kadoch is the first person that Quebec tax authorities have gone after since receiving the data from France on the Swiss accounts.